Literature Review

Does carbon footprint affect the PSI or the quality of air in Singapore?

Based on these graphs, we deduce that our carbon footprint has a great effect on the air quality in Singapore and the PSI readings. Poor air quality will negatively affect our health and so from all this we can deduce that carbon footprint is a serious issue that has to be dealt with.

What is
carbon footprint?

A carbon footprint has historically been defined as "the total sets of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions caused by an organization, event, product or person."
However, calculating the total carbon footprint is impossible due to
the large amount of data required and the fact that carbon dioxide can
be produced by natural occurrences. It is for this reason that Wright,
Kemp, and Williams, writing in the journal Carbon Management, have suggested a more practicable definition:"A measure of the total amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4)
emissions of a defined population, system or activity, considering all
relevant sources, sinks and storage within the spatial and temporal
boundary of the population, system or activity of interest. Calculated
as carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) using the relevant 100-year global warming potential (GWP100)."
Greenhouse gases can be emitted through transport, land clearance,
and the production and consumption of food, fuels, manufactured goods,
materials, wood, roads, buildings, and services. For simplicity of reporting, it is often expressed in terms of the amount of carbon dioxide, or its equivalent of other GHGs, emitted.
Most of the carbon footprint emissions for the average U.S. household
come from "indirect" sources, i.e. fuel burned to produce goods far
away from the final consumer. These are distinguished from emissions
which come from burning fuel directly in one's car or stove, commonly
referred to as "direct" sources of the consumer's carbon footprint.
The concept name of the carbon footprint originates from ecological footprint ,discussion,
which was developed by Rees and Wackernagel in the 1990s which
estimates the number of "earths" that would theoretically be required if
everyone on the planet consumed resources at the same level as the
person calculating their ecological footprint. However, carbon
footprints are much more specific than ecological footprints since they
measure direct emissions of gasses that cause climate change into the
atmosphere.Measuring Carbon Footprints
An individual's, nation's, or organisation's carbon footprint can be
measured by undertaking a GHG emissions assessment or other calculative
activities denoted as carbon accounting.
Once the size of a carbon footprint is known, a strategy can be devised
to reduce it, e.g. by technological developments, better process and
product management, changed Green Public or Private Procurement (GPP), carbon capture,
consumption strategies, and others. Several free online carbon
footprint calculators exist, with at least one supported by publicly
available peer-reviewed data and calculations from the University of
California, Berkeley's CoolClimate Network research consortium.
The mitigation of carbon footprints through the development of alternative projects, such as solar or wind energy or reforestation, represents one way of reducing a carbon footprint and is often known as Carbon offsetting.
The main influences on carbon footprints include population, economic output, and energy and carbon intensity of the economy. These factors are the main targets of individuals and businesses in
order to decrease carbon footprints. Scholars suggest the most effective
way to decrease a carbon footprint is to either decrease the amount of
energy needed for production or to decrease the dependence on carbon
emitting fuels.

By area,

The Average Carbon Footprint in the United States vs. World The average U.S. household carbon footprint is 48 tons CO2e
per year. The single largest source of emissions for the typical
household is from driving (gasoline use). Transportation as a whole
(driving, flying & small amount from public transit) is the largest
overall category, followed by housing (electricity, natural gas, waste,
construction) then food (mostly from red meat, dairy and seafood
products, but also includes emissions from all other food), then goods
followed lastly by services. The carbon footprint of U.S. households is
about 5 times greater than the global average, which is approximately 10
tons CO2e per household per year. For most U.S. households,
the single most important action to reduce their carbon footprint is
driving less or switching to a more efficient vehicle. Cement production and carbon footprint resulting from soil sealing was 8.0 Mg person−1 of total per capita CO2
emissions (Italy, year 2003); the balance between C loss due to soil
sealing and C stocked in man-made infrastructures resulted in a net loss
to the atmosphere, -0.6 Mg C ha−1 y−1.

Of products

Several organizations have calculated carbon footprints of products; The US Environmental Protection Agency has addressed paper, plastic
(candy wrappers), glass, cans, computers, carpet and tires. Australia
has addressed lumber and other building materials. Academics in
Australia, Korea and the US have addressed paved roads. Companies,
nonprofits and academics have addressed mailing letters and packages.
Carnegie Mellon University has estimated the CO2 footprints
of 46 large sectors of the economy in each of eight countries. Carnegie
Mellon, Sweden and the Carbon Trust have addressed foods at home and in
restaurants.
The Carbon Trust has worked with UK manufacturers on foods, shirts and detergents, introducing a CO2 label in March 2007. The label is intended to comply with a new British Publicly Available Specification (i.e. not a standard), PAS 2050,and is being actively piloted by The Carbon Trust and various industrial partners. As of August 2012 The Carbon Trust state they have measured 27,000 certifiable product carbon footprints.
Evaluating the package of some products is key to figuring out the carbon footprint.
The key way to determine a carbon footprint is to look at the materials
used to make the item. For example, a juice carton is made of an
aseptic carton, a beer can is made of aluminum, and some water bottles
either made of glass or plastic. The larger the size, the larger the
footprint will be.

Of electricity

The following table compares, from peer-reviewed studies of full life
cycle emissions and from various other studies, the carbon footprint of
various forms of energy generation: Nuclear, Hydro, Coal, Gas, Solar
Cell, Peat and Wind generation technology.

The Vattenfall study found renewable and nuclear generation responsible for far less CO2 than fossil fuel generation.

Of heat and various combined heat and power schemes, heat pumps, etc.:

The previous table gives the carbon footprint per kilowatt-hour of
electricity generated, which is about half the world's man-made CO2 output. The CO2
footprint for heat is equally significant and research shows that using
waste heat from power generation in combined heat and power district
heating, chp/dh has the lowest carbon footprint. much lower than micro-power or heat pumps.

Kyoto Protocol, carbon offsetting, and certificates:

Carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere, and the emissions of
other GHGs, are often associated with the burning of fossil fuels, like
natural gas, crude oil and coal. While this is harmful to the
environment, carbon offsets can be purchased in an attempt to make up for these harmful effects.
The Kyoto Protocol
defines legally binding targets and timetables for cutting the GHG
emissions of industrialized countries that ratified the Kyoto Protocol.
Accordingly, from an economic or market perspective, one has to
distinguish between a mandatory market and a voluntary market. Typical for both markets is the trade with emission certificates:

Certified Emission Reduction (CER)

Emission Reduction Unit (ERU)

Verified Emission Reduction (VER)

Mandatory market mechanisms:

To reach the goals defined in the Kyoto Protocol, with the least economical costs, the following flexible mechanisms were introduced for the mandatory market:

Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)

Joint Implementation (JI)

Emissions trading

The CDM and JI mechanisms requirements for projects which create a supply of emission reduction instruments, while Emissions Trading allows those instruments to be sold on international markets.
- Projects which are compliant with the requirements of the CDM mechanism generate Certified Emissions Reductions (CERs).
- Projects which are compliant with the requirements of the JI mechanism generate Emission Reduction Units (ERUs).
The CERs and ERUs can then be sold through Emissions Trading. The demand for the CERs and ERUs being traded is driven by:
- Shortfalls in national emission reduction obligations under the Kyoto Protocol.
- Shortfalls amongst entities obligated under local emissions reduction schemes.
Nations which have failed to deliver their Kyoto emissions reductions obligations can enter Emissions Trading
to purchase CERS and ERUs to cover their treaty shortfalls. Nations and
groups of nations can also create local emission reduction schemes
which place mandatory carbon dioxide emission targets on entities within
their national boundaries. If the rules of a scheme allow, the
obligated entities may be able to cover all or some of any reduction
shortfalls by purchasing CERs and ERUs through Emissions Trading. While local emissions reduction schemes have no status under the Kyoto Protocol itself, they play a prominent role in creating the demand for CERs and ERUs, stimulating Emissions Trading and setting a market price for emissions.
A well-known mandatory local emissions trading scheme is the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS).
New changes are being made to the trading schemes. The EU Emissions Trading Scheme
is set to make some new changes within the next year. The new changes
will target the emissions produced by flight travel in and out of the
European Union.
Other nations are scheduled to start participating in Emissions
Trading Schemes within the next few year. These nations include China,
India and the United States.

Voluntary Market Mechanisms:

In contrast to the strict rules set out for the mandatory market, the
voluntary market provides companies with different options to acquire
emissions reductions. A solution, comparable with those developed for
the mandatory market, has been developed for the voluntary market, the
Verified Emission Reductions (VER). This measure has the great advantage
that the projects/activities are managed according to the quality
standards set out for CDM/JI projects but the certificates provided are
not registered by the governments of the host countries or the Executive
Board of the UNO. As such, high quality VERs can be acquired at lower
costs for the same project quality. However, at present VERs can not be
used in the mandatory market.
The voluntary market in North America is divided between members of
the Chicago Climate Exchange and the Over The Counter (OTC) market. The Chicago Climate Exchange is a voluntary yet legally binding cap-and-trade emission scheme
whereby members commit to the capped emission reductions and must
purchase allowances from other members or offset excess emissions. The
OTC market does not involve a legally binding scheme and a wide array of
buyers from the public and private spheres, as well as special events
that want to go carbon neutral.
There are project developers, wholesalers, brokers, and retailers, as
well as carbon funds, in the voluntary market. Some businesses and
nonprofits in the voluntary market encompass more than just one of the
activities listed above. A report by Ecosystem Marketplace shows that
carbon offset prices increase as it moves along the supply chain—from
project developer to retailer.
While some mandatory emission reduction schemes exclude forest
projects, these projects flourish in the voluntary markets. A major
criticism concerns the imprecise nature of GHG sequestration
quantification methodologies for forestry projects. However, others note
the community co-benefits that forestry projects foster. Project types in the voluntary market range from avoided deforestation, afforestation/reforestation, industrial gas sequestration, increased energy efficiency, fuel switching, methane capture from coal plants and livestock, and even renewable energy. Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) sold on the voluntary market are quite controversial due to additionality concerns.
Industrial Gas projects receive criticism because such projects only
apply to large industrial plants that already have high fixed costs.
Siphoning off industrial gas for sequestration is considered picking the
low hanging fruit; which is why credits generated from industrial gas
projects are the cheapest in the voluntary market.
The size and activity of the voluntary carbon market is difficult to
measure. The most comprehensive report on the voluntary carbon markets
to date was released by Ecosystem Marketplace and New Carbon Finance in
July 2007.
ÆON of Japan is firstly approved by Japanese authority to indicate carbon footprint on three private brand goods in October 2009.

Ways to reduce carbon footprint:

The most common way to reduce the carbon footprint of humans is to Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.
In manufacturing this can be done by recycling the packing materials,
by selling the obsolete inventory of one industry to the industry who is
looking to buy unused items at lesser price to become competetive.
Nothing should be disposed off into the soil, all the ferrous materials
which are prone to degrade or oxidise with time should be sold as early
as possible at reduced price.
This can also be done by using reusable items such as thermoses for
daily coffee or plastic containers for water and other cold beverages
rather than disposable ones. If that option isn't available, it is best
to properly recycle the disposable items after use. When one household
recycles at least half of their household waste, they can save 1.2 tons
of carbon dioxide annually.
Another easy option is to drive less. By walking or biking to the
destination rather than driving, not only is a person going to save
money on gas, but they will be burning less fuel and releasing fewer
emissions in to the atmosphere. However, if walking is not an option,
one can look into carpooling or mass transportation options in their
area.
Yet another option for reducing the carbon footprint of humans is to
use less air conditioning and heating in the home. By adding insulation
to the walls and attic of one's home, and installing weather stripping
or caulking around doors and windows one can lower their heating costs
more than 25 percent. This helps because it reduces the amount of energy
needed to heat and cool the house. One can also turn down the heat
while they are sleeping at night or away during the day, and keep
temperatures moderate at all times. Setting the thermostat just 2
degrees lower in winter and higher in summer could save about 1 ton of
carbon dioxide each year .
The carbon handprint movement emphasizes individual forms of carbon
offsetting, like using more public transportation or planting trees in
deforested regions, to reduce one's carbon footprint and increase their
"handprint".